Meeks keeps Collins in his comfort zone

At times this season the 76ers have appeared to be a fun-loving, all-for-one, whatever-needs-to-be-done unit. Not surprisingly, that was most evident when the team was compiling 20 wins in its first 29 games.

In the following 27 games, during which they accumulated only nine wins, the wheels didn't fall completely off the bus, but the vehicle was shaking enough for coach Doug Collins to change the starting lineup twice.

All the while, when players were struggling and injuries piled up and fatigue became as common as the losses, Collins had that stabilizing player in the back of his mind.

You know how some things in life just bring comfort - from an old pair of jeans to a certain song or a type of food? Well, Jodie Meeks appears to be just that to his coach. When things aren't going right or seem just slighty off kilter, it's Meeks who usually brings back the calmness for the highly strung Collins.

Strange? Of course. Especially when you consider Meeks is not a big-time scorer, a defensive stopper or a wizardry playmaker. Rather, Meeks is the team's best spot-up shooter, who rarely gets his number called at the offensive end. His defense has improved, but certainly can get better, and all that is really asked of him is to knock down open shots and not turn the ball over.

So why all the trust, why the label of "glue guy" from his coach?

"I guess I'm kind of the guy who's looked at to do the little things right, I think," said Meeks, now in his third NBA season, most of them spent with the Sixers after a deadline trade brought him here from Milwaukee 2 years ago. "I'm counted on to make shots but not only that, but to play good defense, do the smart things on the court and just play solid."

The Sixers coveted Meeks as a potential second-round pick in 2009, but were beaten to him by the Bucks. Meeks had garnered much interest after posting 23.7 points a game his final season at Kentucky, but many were skeptical of his smaller size (generously listed at 6-4) for an NBA "two" guard.

When the Sixers had a chance to nab him in the trade, they didn't hesitate.

Meeks got very little time during his first year in Philly, some at the end of a dismal season under Eddie Jordan that concluded with a 27-55 record. In came Collins the next season, and for his first six games as coach, Meeks was relegated to sitting on the bench in a sports jacket, deactivated.

But before every practice and game, Meeks arrived early, stayed late. He worked diligently with the assistant coaches on improving his shooting, on moving without the ball. His work didn't go unnoticed.

A horrendous 3-13 start had Collins wondering which way to turn. Ingeniously - or desperately - Collins turned to Meeks. Two games later, Meeks was starting. After a loss in his initial start, the Sixers won six of eight and finished 38-28 the rest of the season.

But it appeared Meeks' time as a starter would come to an end this season with the solid preseason by Evan Turner. Collins, though, decided he needed his glue to stay with the first unit. And after 29 games, few doubted him. But then the injuries and losses began to accumulate, and, just after the All-Star break, Collins went with Turner instead of Meeks as a starter. Seeing a lack of cohesion, though, Collins decided to go back to Meeks as a starter on Tuesday in New Jersey, and the Sixers promptly snapped a four-game losing streak and strung together a couple of wins in a row.

Can Jodie Meeks mean that much to this team?

"When I changed the lineup the first time [removing Meeks for Turner], it wasn't because of anything Jodie had done poorly," Collins said. "We had lost some games, and I think what happens as a coach is when you've lost some games, can I shake this up and maybe find something else that might work. We went through a stretch where I didn't like the way that team was playing, so we put Jodie back into the starting lineup. I think he's something like 23-16 as a starter. He's done a good job for us. When he makes his shot, it's electric for our team. He's one of the guys on our team who can give you nine points in about 2 minutes, like bam, bam, bam with three quick threes.

"Sometimes, we'll look and see that Jodie was 0-for-6 and didn't make a shot. [But] Jodie's presence on the floor, when he sprints the floor, he takes the defense down with him. So now the threat of our break is greater, because now they have to guard him. If you watch on tape, they are not going to leave him. He plays off the ball. He is in constant motion. Defensively, what he does for our team is with his speed. The biggest improvement that I thought we made as a defensive team was when Thad [Young] and Jodie grew [better] because of their speed. It's all those things. The guys on the team love him, they cheer for him - as do the coaches. He is as quality a young guy as you'll ever be around, and all he wants to do is win."

Doing the little things certainly couldn't be how Meeks envisioned his NBA career, not after such a prolific scoring season at Kentucky, which included a 54-point outing against Tennessee.

"It's part of the job. I do whatever the team needs me to do," Meeks said. "In college during my freshman year, I was kind of counted on to be the glue guy as a player and knock down some shots. Here, whatever I have to do to get out on the court is fine with me.

"Obviously, it was a little disappointing [going to the bench] because everybody wants to start. But the main thing is to just get out on the court, and, basically, it's up to you what you do with it. It was a little different coming off the bench after starting for so long, you have to sort of get into a different rhythm. But now I'm back in there and have to sort of get used to it again. But if the team's winning, that's all I care about. I know I have to get out on the open court, spot up, take what the other team gives me and don't force any shots. I need to be patient, I think is the main thing, just be patient."

His play seems to afford his coach that luxury. As strange as that may seem.

"We saw he made a great play on tape the other day," Collins said. "He drove baseline, shot the ball over the rim, it was scrummed loose by [Andre Iguodala], who threw a behind-the-back pass to Jodie, who made a three. If you watched Dre's reaction and everybody's reaction [it was great], because everybody loves Jodie.

"I'm hoping he'll continue to do what he does for us, just settle down a little bit. I think he presses on his shot a little bit. He doesn't get them that often, because he's not really a primary offensive player for us. We don't run that many plays for him. I just want him to relax. When he gets a shot, shoot it, and if he misses it, when he has another one, shoot it again. I don't care how many he misses as long as they're good shots; he has to keep taking those shots. I'm as fond of him as any player could be as a coach, because of what he brings to our team."

Contact Bob Cooney at cooneyb@phillynews.com. Follow him on Twitter @BobCooney76. Read his blog, Sixerville, at www.philly.com/Sixerville.